Equestrian SportKevin Babington celebrated his 34th birthday yesterday, but the present topping his wish list - an individual medal at the European show jumping championships - eluded him as he slid from overnight fourth to 11th place and could only watch as the Germans, team champions on Friday, executed a mass take-over of the podium.
The omens were all good, with Babington's fourth echoing the position Dermott Lennon had occupied before claiming individual gold at the world equestrian games in Jerez last September. But Babington's medal hopes evaporated in the heat haze over the Donaueschingen arena as two rails and a toe in the water pushed him out of the top 10.
A late falling pole in the middle of the huge combination in the first round - "I was actually over the last part before it fell," a desperately disappointed Babington said afterwards - dropped the Irish pair one place, but when Carling King also landed in the water, they tumbled to 12th at the break for the course change.
The water, approached off a looping 360-degree turn, affected the three above Babington, too, as Switzerland's Beat Mandli, his 21-year-old compatriot Steve Guerdat and overnight leader, Germany's Marcus Ehning, all faulted there.
Guerdat dropped only one place to third, but Mandli, who also hit the Audi planks, plummeted to 11th and Ehning, who took out the last with the 17-year-old For Pleasure, was down in ninth.
Eighth to go of the 19 left in for the medal decider, Babington and Carling King looked the picture of poise and confidence as they soared over the first nine fences, only to fault at the last for a finishing total of 18.87 faults.
The Germans, all bunched together just above Babington, produced three sensational clears that sent the capacity crowd into euphoria.
Two down for Wim Schroder and Michel Robert allowed the German trio up two slots and Steve Guerdat also obliged when hitting the Audi planks oxer.
Sweden's sweetheart Malin Baryard, in line for the silver, took out the middle of the combination for a further German advance and now only Ludo Philippaerts stood in the way of a German whitewash.
The Belgian was a doubtful starter for the championships after knee surgery last month but, with a fence in hand, the gold looked a certainty as he cleared the second last.
He could afford to annihilate the final oxer and, even when the front rail dropped onto the grass, the title was surely his.
But the clock showed an extra 1.81 seconds and the resulting time fault dropped a devastated Philippaerts to fourth, leaving the gold to newcomer Christian Ahlmann ahead of his trainer Ludger Beerbaum, with Ehning galloping up from ninth to take the bronze.
